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Lake View H.S. Forced to Cut $13K in Supplies After Layoffs Finalized

By Serena Dai | September 13, 2013 9:59am
 Lake View High School had to cut about $13,000 from its school-supply budget after layoffs were finalized, Principal Lilith Werner told the local school council.
Lake View High School had to cut about $13,000 from its school-supply budget after layoffs were finalized, Principal Lilith Werner told the local school council.
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DNAinfo/Serena Dai

LAKEVIEW — The budget cuts are not over yet for Lake View High School.

After CPS finalized the elimination of 15 staff positions due to budget cuts, Principal Lilith Werner had to slash $13,000 from the supplies and reading materials to make up for a teacher who ended up being more expensive than Werner originally predicted.

She also asked the local school council at a meeting this week to take out $2,000 from professional development and about $5,300 from other enrichment programs.

In total, $20,228.27 — "We're really counting it to the last penny," Werner said — unexpectedly had to be moved to personnel in order to balance the budget, meaning fewer school supplies across departments.

CPS also overprojected the number of students who would enroll in the school, Werner said. Extra money based on the per-pupil funding that was supposed to be taken out of accounts this week remains in Lake View's accounts, but Werner said she thinks that $550,000 eventually will be pulled. 

With that in mind, she created the initial budget without that $550,000, she said. The school ultimately lost about $1.5 million this year, not including added financial burdens such as janitorial supplies, she said.

"I'm not happy," she told the LSC. "A lot of teachers are not happy."

CPS will post final enrollment numbers Sept. 23, according to a CPS representative.

New CPS rules for judging student performance also will present "particular challenges" to the school in light of a diminished budget, she said. High schools now are judged based on four-year graduation rates instead of five-year, but the school has less money to offer Saturday classes, she said.

High schools will also be judged on whether graduated seniors start their sophomore year of college, a measure of "college persistence," Werner said.

The school will be rated on "medical compliance" based on how many students have the state-mandated Tdap vaccine, which the school can help students with only with parent permission. About half of the student body has the shot, Werner said.

The new performance indicators had the LSC members murmuring and shaking their heads, with some saying the school had little to zero control over the factors. 

"There are a lot of metrics on here that are beyond teacher, staff, admin, STEM program manager," Werner said in agreement. "So next year when we get our rating, that’s everything we’re getting based on. With less money."

A CPS spokeswoman did not respond to a request for comment on performance indicators.